Kangpokpi: Bodies of two missing Taphou youths recovered, police say

The bodies of two young men who went missing from Taphou Kuki village in Manipur's Kangpokpi district last week were recovered by security forces on Sunday morning, November 1, police said.

The two were identified as Paoginlal Hangsing (also spelt Hangshing), 20, and Thangginlun (Tinginlun) Chongloi, 21, both residents of Taphou Kuki village, according to NorthEast Now, which cited Manipur Police, and the Hindustan Times, which cited officials.

Where the bodies were found

In a statement, Manipur Police said an extensive search had been carried out by joint teams of the state police, the CRPF's CoBRA unit, the CRPF, Assam Rifles and the Rapid Action Force in the general area east of National Highway-2, along the SP Road, a hilly route linking Kangpokpi with neighbouring Senapati district.

According to NorthEast Now, the bodies were found at around 7.30 am along the Senapati-Phaibung road, about 13 to 14 km east of NH-2. The recovery came after a four-day search that followed the registration of an FIR over the suspected abduction, covering Taphou Onaeme, Taphou Liangmei, Marenmei, Upper Marenmei and nearby forests.

Police said the bodies were being taken to Kangpokpi for post-mortem examination and that legal formalities were under way. Police have not given a cause of death. Search and combing operations will continue to trace and arrest those responsible, they said.

How they went missing

The two went missing on the evening of October 28 while returning to their village from the Hengbung police outpost, NorthEast Now reported. Investigators suspect they were abducted near a 9th Manipur Rifles post in the Marenmei area, close to the boundary between Kangpokpi and Senapati districts.

The Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU), a Kuki-Zo body in Kangpokpi, has alleged that they were abducted by armed cadres of Naga groups. Those groups have not publicly responded, and police have not said who was behind the killings.

Days of protest

CoTU called a 48-hour shutdown in Kangpokpi district on October 29 and extended it by another 24 hours on October 31, after thousands rallied in Kangpokpi town demanding the pair's safe return. A memorandum addressed to Union Home Minister Amit Shah on behalf of 21 civil society organisations had sought their immediate release.

The recovery came a day after police confirmed three deaths in a gunfight between armed groups in Noney district, amid heightened tension in Manipur's hill districts. NEInsider will update this story as police release further details.